Harry Potter and The Marvel Knights
by KerbrosX
Summary: Out in the streets of London by himself, Harry met and befriended a young Tony Stark. He didn't expect this meeting to launch himself into the world far bigger and weirder, filled with aliens, sorcerers, mutated humans, and masked people. When a tournament in the way with a new threat hiding in the shadows. Can Harry Potter retain his sanity in this giant mess?
1. Prologue

Prologue

Unknown Location, 2007

''It seems you've finally joined us, Mr. Potter." A male voice said out loud, only to be answered by the grunt of a teenager, tied to a chair, covered with bruises and dry blood, complimented by a damaged black leather outfit. Harry Potter growled as he tried to break free, but without success.

''W-What the hell?'' Harry stuttered.

''Those chains are capable of blocking your magical abilities, which means that your little tricks are null, same thing goes with this room. You should thanks, Amelia Bones for this idea. Now, you're all mine Mr. Potter'' the man explained. The raven-haired teenager looked at his surrounding, noticing that the walls were completely engraved with runes. At the same time, he noticed three strangers staring at him with calm and collected expression. The first person was a Caucasian man in his forties; he had short brown hair with blue eyes. He had worn a blue marine costume and had clasped his hands behind his back. The second person was a Caucasian woman in her twenties; she had short brown hair in a bob with icy blue eyes. Her outfit was dark blue catsuit with an odd logo. The last person was a tall black man with a black eye-patch on his right eye; he was bald and had a goatee. He wore a black outfit with a long black coat. Harry stared at the newcomers with annoyance and yet curiosity.

''Did someone tell you that you look exactly like Samuel Jackson'' Harry sneered at the last man, waiting for a reaction. However, to his displeasure, the man didn't react.

''Really? The silent treatment? I wouldn't mind if only I knew the reason why I got kidnapped by the Legendary Nick Fury and his cronies of SHIELD?'' Harry said with nonchalance.

Fury snorted at his question. ''You believe that I will let The Boy Who Lived and Charlus Potter's grandson roaming free in the streets of New York, blowing apartment buildings and causing trouble everywhere he goes? No, Mr. Potter, I am not going to let the saviour of the Wizarding World walking free and creating chaos in the New York City.''

''You've got the wrong guy Fury. Wade Wilson is the exact definition of a trouble magnet.''

''Deadpool is at least productive with money. You, on another hand, are a nasty piece of work, a wild card and a troublemaker just like your father. Creating problems everywhere he goes.'' The mention of his late father made the young wizard smile.

''Got to keep the tradition alive Director. By the way, nice try with your agent, but unfortunately, I'm not too red-headed. She looks too far creepy to my taste if you catch my drift.''

''You think this is funny? You almost killed one of my best agents!'' Harry mentally smirked, knowing that he had found a sensitive spot.

''What did you expect? Your agents seem to be far more perfect to be a teacher. Which muggle teacher teaches Latin?"

''We found her in a comatose state in a dumpster in Hell Kitchen, stripped naked, do you have something related to that?'' the another man asked with a cool tone. Harry shrugged his shoulders. ''Not really, Sue and Blaise never liked the agents from the Red Room. I couldn't blame them for that. Nobody likes a child murderer,'' Harry sensed an amount of dark emotions above his head, concluding that someone was watching them at this instant.

''So, someone is watching us and yet I don't see any cameras. Probably some tech from Stark Industries? I wonder how Tony is going to react when he is going to learn that SHIELD is using his tech behind his back.'' Fury seemed to frown at the mention of Tony Stark.

''Nothing. You are going to keep your mouth shut on this one Potter.''

''Or what? You will torture me, be my guest. Threaten my family? They're all dead!'' Fury didn't respond to his rant.

The female agent handed him some electronic device and he showed it to the young wizard. Curious, Harry stared at the small screen. Clearly, he didn't like whatever was shown on the screen as his eyes narrowed dangerously.

''How did you get that?'' Harry seemed annoyed.

''Eyes everywhere Potter, I place agents all around the world as well. And I've got my only good eye on you since you walked in this city. You're a wild card Mr. Potter and you seem to be the only one who has a good idea of the current situation.'' Harry didn't answer the unasked question or made any kind of movement. His eyes still glued to the small screen.

''What do you want to know Fury?''

''Everything from the start would be appreciated'' The other man asked with a grin that annoyed the younger man.

''Did I speak to you, Principal Coulson?'' Harry asked with a sneer.

''If you care about your grade Mr. Potter, then you must.''

''Then I guess that parents would like to hear that the principal of the Empire State High School, violated his student's privacy. Then again, it is crazy what we can do with photoshop. Don't you think mate?'' Harry and the man named Coulson, started a glaring contest to Fury's irritation and the woman's amusement.

''Agent Coulson!'' the brown-haired man broke his staring contest with the black haired wizard.

''Don't make things harder then they're now Potter, you're in deep shit. I need to know what happened or there is a cell with your name written on it.'' Harry stayed silent, annoyed by his current situation.

''I'm ready to talk, but not in front of your lapdogs. The members of SHIELD have the strange habit of twisting the words of their prisoners.'' He exclaimed. Once again, Nick Fury said nothing as he and his subordinates left the strange room. A few moments later, a newcomer entered the room, revealing herself to be a stern looking woman. She had long red hair asymmetrically parted on her right side and gray eyes. She wore a black business suit with a black turtleneck. Her blazer's cuffs and the lower part had clamshell-like designs. Accessory-wise, she wore a necklace an earrings; and a few dark hair clips could be seen by her right ear. She had painted her fingernails violet.

''Mr. Potter, it been a while.'' The woman said without waiting for any reaction from The Boy Who Lived. If Harry was surprised, he didn't show it. She conjured a chair from nowhere and then sat in front of the teenager.

''Mrs. Bones, we meet again. How is Britain doing without their forsaken saviour?'' Harry sneered at which Amelia Bones didn't even flinch, instead, she looked at him with sorrowful eyes.

''Drop the act Harry, I'm not here to arrest you, but to talk. Can we have a civilized conversation? At least for Sirius' sake?'' By the end of her sentence, Harry had dropped his smirk and he stared at her with a neutral expression.

''How's Sirius?''

''He's fine most of the time. He misses you quite a lot.''

''Unlike the whipping werewolf," Harry stated with bitterness in his voice. The older woman didn't correct him, thinking that would worsen the current situation.

''Now, I want every detail from day one to this day.''

''Well, I was born the last day of the seventh month from my mother va-'' Harry started but he was interrupted by the red-haired woman.

''Not that kind of details!'' Amelia was clearly embarrassed.

''Then, you have to be more specific. For real, it all started when my fat ass of uncle dropped me out in London.''

* * *

London, 2004

Silence, it was something uncharacteristic that didn't fit his uncle's hot-tempered personality. Harry expected insults, cries or even a dark glare full of hatred, but surprisingly, he got nothing. Since Vernon Dursley had picked him up from the train station, he hadn't made a sound, only putting his attention on the road. The trip was very awkward for the young wizard. It was not like Harry minded, actually he was surprised that Vernon didn't call him boy or freak till now. The silence was what the young wizard needed after another year risking his neck and saving his godfather, Sirius Black, a man wrongly framed for a crime he didn't commit and the best friend of his late father. The young wizard couldn't help but wonder where the fugitive was right now. Suddenly the car stopped and Harry turned his head towards Vernon who turned off the engine and clenched the steering wheel so hard that his hands turned purple.

''Why are we stopping?'' The plump man didn't reply as he took a large sum of money from his pocket and threw it away on Harry's faded jeans.

''This is ten thousand pounds. I want you to get out of our house for the summer.'' Vernon said bluntly. Harry didn't understand what was happening. Firstly, his uncle didn't insult him, he was in the middle of London and his uncle just gave him a large amount of cash. How the hell did Vernon Dursley found this much amount of money was a wonder.

''W-What! You want me to be out for the rest of summer?'' Harry didn't show it but he was happy because he now had the possibility to have a good summer instead of a crappy one. Although, he never understood why he had to return to the Dursley Residence every summer. Apart from the chores, they had shown in a subtle way that they didn't want him in their lives, the feeling was shared mutually.

''Listen, Boy! Those three last summers had become disastrous because of your freakishness and after what happened to Marge I came to the conclusion that it was for the best of the family to send you away.''

''When you say family, do you mean you, Dudley and Petunia? Because I'm not sure we are close enough to be considered family.'' Harry said lazily, ignoring the bulging vein on Vernon's neck.

''Do you think we care about you boy?'' Harry wondered if this was a real question or a rhetorical one, so he decided not to reply anyway.

''I have given you enough money to hold your own for two months. You can do whatever you want. You can even visit your freakish friends, I don't care as long as you stay away from us.'' It sounded to be too good to be true. He would have two months to do whatever he wanted and he could even join Ron or Hermione anytime he desired.

''Give me double and you will not see me for two years,'' Harry said bluntly as he tried to extract more money from his uncle. The black haired teenager had so much to do and catch up. Vernon's pink face changed to a purple shade but he decided to let it go and gave him the same amount as in Harry's hands again. Harry gladly took the money but just then Vernon grabbed his wrist furiously.

''You better hold your part of the arrangement boy or I'll make sure that you will regret the day you were born.'' Rather than showing fear, Harry glared at the heavyweight man and broke his strong grip.

''You wish fat-ass'' Harry took his suitcase and Hedwig's cage from the backseat and sent a last glare to Vernon as he got out of the car for the final time, closing the door hard. Rather than wasting time, Vernon Dursley quickly ignited the engine and left the young teenager alone in London with twenty thousand pounds in his hands, a large suitcase, and an owl. Oh, how this could go wrong.

The young wizard was about to enjoy his new freedom when he saw a young man, sitting on the pavement with a broken bottle of wine near his feet. At first, the young teenager thought it's was a drunkard but the man's clothes were looking far too expensive to belong to a drunkard. Harry would have continued his way toward the Leaky Cauldron but somehow, he couldn't leave the man alone. Summoning his courage, he tapped on the stranger's shoulder to attract his attention. He waited for a couple of seconds until the man finally stared at the young wizard's emerald green orbs with his brown eyes.

''What the fuck do you want kid?''

* * *

A Few Minutes Ago

It was official, something or someone in this universe hated Tony Stark with a furious passion. He officially hated the position of CEO of his father's company; he had lost a secretary for the third time this month. The board was pressuring him to deliver a new product, and the media had predicted the fall of the company by his hands. But, the young man didn't care about that. Today, was the day of Jarvis' funeral and the young millionaire couldn't take it at all. Edwin Jarvis, the man who raised him as the father he never had, died in his sleep after a long fight with depression. Tony couldn't bear himself to stare at the lifeless body of his butler and the last link with his parents. The man did everything in his power to make him better after they were dead, and he was too proud to say thank you.

Like his father always said, "Stark men are made with iron. Crying is a sign of weakness.'' Ton stared at the bottle of wine for a while. In rage, he threw the bottle against the ground.

''Nice job Stark. You break a bottle of wine that costs six hundred pounds. Howard would be so proud.'' The young adult was lamenting to himself when he felt a touch on his shoulder and he saw a young boy staring at him with bright green eyes, covered by the biggest pair of glasses that he ever seen.

''What the fuck do you want kid?'' Harry was taken by surprise by the blunt question of the young man. He noticed that the man spoke with a strange accent.

''I-I'm sorry sir, but I thought you were drunk?'' Harry chose his words carefully, noticing the annoyed expression of the tanned man.

''Wish I was then I would not be thinking about this damn funeral'' Tony glared hardly at the bottle.

''Funeral? Someone, you know died?'' Tony hesitated to reveal his reasons to come to Great Britain. But since the kid was obviously not a journalist, he could avoid a scandal, for the fourth time this week.

''My butler...He died last week and...Here I am, alone in London, with a ten years old four-eyed kid.'' Harry's eyes narrowed at the remark about his age.

''I'm thirteen actually,'' Harry said with frustration.

''Really? Whoa, kid, your parents must not feed you enough.'' Tony tried to ease the atmosphere until he noticed the words coming from his mouth.

''I'm sorry kid. I didn't mean that your parents are poor. But, by judging your clothes and your height, a man can be mistaken or maybe it's the truth and I can't control what I said.'' Tony stopped as he glanced at the young boy. Harry's confused face had turn absolutely blank at the mention of his parents.

''My parents are dead.'' Harry said simply.

''Really? Whoa! This is awkward'' Tony scratched the back of his head and tried to find something to appease the atmosphere that had turned awkward in a blink.

''It's alright. My parents have been dead since when I was of fifteen months'' Thais statement surprised Stark.

''Really?'' Harry nodded his head.

''They died in a car accident'' Tony's mouth dropped.

''So did mine..'' Harry was taken off-guard by his answer.

''Really? You parents are dead too?'' The young wizard did feel bad at lying about the true demise of his parents to the stranger. Although, he didn't understand why he shared this kind of information with the young man.

''Yeah...They died three years ago, on Christmas Eve'' Tony said softly as old memories emerged from deep in his mind.

''I guess life puts us in the club of dead parents'' Harry said dryly which made the tanned man laugh softly.

''The club of dead parents, I like it. Doesn't gives the full details but explains everything. And we don't need to explain all this bullshit.'' They both sit on the concrete pavement, ignoring their surroundings.

''We could start a club right away, we already have two members.''

''It's quite morbid you know kid, but quite true...wonder why it is so easy talking with you rather than my friends or the psychologist?''

'Well except one' Tony thought.

''Because, they said that they could try to understand the pain. But in reality, they don't and they mean well but... in the end, their pity means nothing.'' Harry said, thinking of Ron and Hermione.

''Dark, but true...So I guess you've got to return to your guardian or something?'' Harry shook his head in negative.

''Actually, no. My relatives gave me enough money to be out of their life for the entire summer. But, I don't complain. I can do everything than I want for whole summer.'' Tony was speechless at the boy's declaration. What kind of person would let a teenager alone in the streets of London?

"Seriously, what kind of man leaves a teenager alone in London?"

"A businessman?"

"I'm a businessman kid." Tony deadpanned.

"Really?"

"Don't you know who I am?" the young wizard shook his head.

"Should I?" Something that he needed to fix his freedom. The older man sighed, and he looked almost relieved for some reason.

"I'm Tony, Tony Stark." he shook the hand of the raven-haired boy.

"Nice to meet you! I'm Harry Potter." Harry responded with a smile on his face.

"Are you hungry?" Tony said after he heard the stomach of the young boy growling. Harry let a blush of embarrassment appear on his cheeks.

"Don't mind if I do." Harry scratched the back of his head when Hedwig let a hoot of an agreement, which surprised the young billionaire.

"Is that an owl?"

'Bloody hell. It is going to be a great pleasure explaining Hedwig to him' Harry thought as Tony stared at the snowy owl with interest.

His summer had started really strange, but he wouldn't complain about it. He would rather be kidnapped by this man than staying with the Dursleys. Harry shook his head; it was a bad thing to think.

''By the way kid, those clothes are actually yours?'' Harry shook his head in denial. He found no point in lying to Tony who was too much absorbed by Hedwig to her amusement and proud.

''You need a makeover.'' Harry tilted his head.

''Makeover?''

* * *

''So this is a makeover!''

''Told you that the colour green would look good on you and your eyes just make it better. Am I right?'' Tony was proud of his work. They found a nice shop in the area and the last two hours was the best time till now in Harry's first summer without the Dursleys.

The young wizard had decided to spend his money on an entirely new wardrobe, having the satisfaction to wear his own clothes for the first time, but Tony disagreed and decided to pay for everything to the young wizard's discomfort. Harry didn't feel right to let Tony pay for his new clothes, but Tony was quite adamant to waste his money and the young wizard couldn't help but to accept help from another person, although he had never met someone as stubborn as him, maybe expect Hermione.

Tony was happy as well during the trip as he threw away Dudley's cast-me-downs in the first trash can that he found. Fortunately for Harry and Tony, a saleswoman was kind enough to help them to the clothes that would fit him and look good on him. It didn't help that she recognized Tony the moment they entered the store. Harry never had a sense of fashion but even he had to admit that he was looking good. He had opted for a black jacket with green line on the sleeves, a plain dark green shirt, black pants with a white belt and green sneakers.

''Especially with your eyes.'' The saleswoman was proud of her job; she couldn't let that nice young boy wearing those rags around. Satisfied, Harry put four plastic bags filled with fresh clothes on the counter.

''How much for all this?''

''It totals three hundred pounds, but for a cutie like you. I will only charge two hundred, take this as a gift.'' she blinked one of her eyes to Harry's embarrassment and Tony's enthusiasm.

''Thank you for not revealing who I am. I am actually staying low profile here and I want to keep it that way,'' The saleswoman nodded her head in agreement.

''It's alright Mr. Stark; I was not going to let anyone seeing him in those rags in a scandal. It could ruin the reputation of the store. So, anything else I could do for you?'' The black-haired man shook his head as he paid the young woman with a large amount of cash.

''You can take the change as you have been a huge help.'' The teenager beamed at the large tip.

''Thank you very much, Miss Steed.''

''The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Stark.'' She turned towards Harry. ''You can come here anytime you want cutie.'' She blinks one more time as she kissed Harry's cheek to his embarrassment. Then, she returned to her job, leaving a flushed Harry and a thoroughly amused Tony.

''Nice job Harry. I didn't know that you were this much popular with the ladies.'' Harry stared at the young billionaire puzzled.

''But I didn't do anything.'' Tony nearly face-palmed himself, almost forgetting that he was dealing with a thirteen years old boy. ''What am I going to do with you kid. Did they teach you Sex Ed in your school?'' Harry tilted his head in confusion.

''S-Sex Ed?'' Tony's mouth dropped.

''What the hell they have been teaching you!''

* * *

A few hours later

''And that's why you don't have to use it too much'' Tony exclaimed to a stunned Harry, sitting on a bench in a park with a Burger King takeout. During the last hour, Tony, to his immense displeasure and embarrassment, gave the talk to Harry that the young wizard never received. Harry couldn't bring himself to stare at the brown eyes of the foreigner during the entire explanation, something that Tony was very glad about.

''S-So, my body will change like the others?''

''Not exactly, everyone grows in a different manner or at a different rate. It will hit you hard and slowly, you will found yourself thinking about girls, taking a lot of showers, staring girls, growing hair at strange places and staring girls like a creepy stalker. There is also a lot of things related to girls.'' Tony took a bite of his cheeseburger.

''It is official; my life is completely messed up, but thanks anyway, Tony.'' 'Do they teach that in Hogwarts anyway?' Harry thought.

''By the way, what do they teach in your school?'' Harry started to panic at the question; he had never expected to stay that long with a muggle. He had enjoyed Tony's company far more than his relatives' but speaking about the Wizarding World was not an option.

''W-Well you know, the basic stuff. History, Chemistry, Math, Biology, Physics? My school is very special'' he said dryly.

''But they don't bother to teach you that kind of thing? Gosh! Sounds like my boarding school.''

''You too?'' Tony shrugged his shoulders.

''Didn't need to, but my dear old man thought it would be a great opportunity to kick me out of the house. Still, If it was not for him, I probably would have left my bestie by herself,'' Harry raised an eyebrow of curiosity.

''You met your friends at your school, Tony?''

''Like any rich kid. I did not complain. They made all experience acceptable. You would like Hope. I have been best friends with her since we were six. Although, her dad hated my old man and by extension, me.''

''Why?'' Tony snorted.

''My old man was brilliant, but he was not very good at interacting with others. If one of his colleagues had found something that could change the world, he would bully the guy until he agreed to make another copy. Her dad didn't really appreciate it when he found out. To make thing worse, his wife had just died.'' Tony explained.

''That sounds horrible, but he had no reasons to hate you. Hating someone's child is just pathetic.'' Harry bitterly.

''I don't mind really. J-Jarvis taught me that the opinion of others doesn't matter.'' Tony seemed tensed on mentioning his former butler so Harry didn't push it.

''So, what do you plan to do kid?'' Harry hadn't ask himself this question. He could send a letter to the Weasleys. But for some reason, the young wizard didn't want to leave London or his strange muggle acquaintance yet.

''I don't know. This is the first summer without my relatives and I hate to say this but, this is the first time I have eaten a cheeseburger and it's bloody delicious!'' Tony glanced at the younger boy with astonishment as Harry took another bite of his burger.

''Geez kid! What kind of family doesn't let a kid enjoyed a cheeseburger?''

''The worse kind actually. It's not like I've had any choice. By the time my parents had died, someone put me in their house. I don't even know if I've some other living relatives.'' Harry answered bitterly. Why it had never crossed his mind since he started Hogwarts three years ago. If his aunt disliked him so much, then why had they decided to keep him anyway?

''Really? Don't you have some other aunts and uncles that are far nicer? Even Grandparents?'' Harry shrugged his shoulders.

''I have never asked or heard about any close relatives. My dad was an only child and I never checked his family background. At my mom's side, however, I have heard that we have got a second cousin living in America. My aunt didn't tell me much about it. Why do you ask that Tony?''

''Well, I would feel responsible for leaving a thirteen-year-old boy without any adult supervision.'' Harry snorted at the mention of adults. Tony had treated him far better than any adult in his life excluding Sirius and Hagrid.

''Most of the adults in my life are pretty useless anyway.'' He muttered sorely, thankfully the tanned foreigner didn't hear it.

''Why about your friends? You have friends right?'' Harry snorted.

''Of course, I'm not that antisocial mate. But, they would probably force me to go back home or have started their vacation. But maybe I could ask one of them to take me in for few days. Then I would search for any living relative.'' He replied with hesitation.

''Good! If you have a problem on your way, there is always a way to fix them. I talk about this through experience.''

''Thanks for everything Tony. I would pay you back but-'' he was stopped when Tony raised his hand.

''It's alright; you don't need to pay me anything. You know, you really made my day.'' Tony said with a sincere smile on his face. This day started horrible but meeting this young Brit had made the day happier.

''But you used your money on me. I don't deserve that kind of stuff.'' The smile on Tony's face quickly disappeared as it shaped into a frown at Harry's panic. Did he make a mistake?

''Listen to me carefully Harry Potter. Get this in your nest-hair brain that everything that your uncle, your aunt and every shitty adult in your life have said about you is false. Don't let people get you down for their own satisfaction. You're a nice and caring boy who made me forget the death of Jarvis. I could just swim in my sorrow in alcohol but I didn't do it because of meeting you. I was able to share with you something that I haven't told even to my best friends. Hell, we even created a club for dead parents by accident. And like any club, we have to stand with each other and watch each other back.'' Harry stared at Tony with disbelief written on his face as both of them started to laugh.

''The club thing is actually real?''

''Of course. The name is still in pending but this is a start. Just because we have an age gap of ten years, I'm a C.E.O and you a high schooler why can't be friends? Please tell me we're friends or else it will be just awkward.'' The young wizard didn't even think about it, sure the man seemed to be more than a little eccentric and could probably keep up an entire conversation with Hermione. He did have fun hanging out with Tony and it probably was not for the last time. The Boy Who Lived couldn't explain it but he felt that he had made a deep connection with Tony. It sounded surreal.

''Well, it's not everyone who can claim to have a millionaire as a friend,'' Harry said with a tentative smile. Tony's face was filled with joy and happiness as the two new friends continued their conversation as Hedwig flew above their head.

'And I know what you are thinking, what happened after that day, it's a weird story.'


	2. Interrogation

Chapter 2: Interrogation

4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging,June 24 2004

Petunia Dursley tapped her foot furiously on the floor, staring her clockwork with impatience as Dudley Dursley glance at his piece of grapefruit with irritation. Because of the complaint of his weight by the school nurse, Petunia had forced a strict regime to the male Dursley's displeasure. She had cut everything that the blonde baby-whale looking teenager enjoyed.

''Mum, why I can't have pizza with extra bacon? This food is for rabbits or vegan people.'' Dudley whined with a thought that the next months were going to be a pain in the ass. The matriarch of The Dursley family rolled her eyes and let a sign of exasperation. She loved her son dearly, but sometimes, there is a thought that perhaps they spoiled their child rotten to the core get revenge on her sister's child. Seeing the misery in the eyes of her nephew it always brought a kind of twisted joy to her life. Petunia had made sure that her son was treated far more special than her when she was young. Having a sister who was a witch made her bland in her parents' eyes. She had tried to attract their attention, having the best grades, however, Lily's accomplishment always overshadowed her. And the situation didn't change even after her graduation and her decision to live in London. She didn't know or ask if they noticed her departure. She was sure that Lily knew of their attitude but said nothing, she probably loved all the attention from others to boost her ego, at least in her opinion. However, sometimes on occasion, she does miss Lily. But this feeling of nostalgia was quickly replaced with scorn and spite. When Harry arrived at her front door, two things had crossed her mind. What idiot would leave a baby on a cold night in November with one blanket, granted from her sister's words, wizards are far more eccentric and careless than but leaving a baby without supervision was unacceptable from a parent's perspective. Furthermore, she hoped to get kill anything related toward magic from her nephew's body. Such as letting her husband and son verbally abuse him. Even though to hurt the child of her sister and blood somewhat pained in her conscience, seeing the hurtful expression of loneliness and sorrow reflected by Harry's eyes was a personal revenge on Lily after years of neglect.

Suddenly Petunia and Dudley heard the front door opening, expecting to see Vernon with a frown on his large face and hearing Harry's annoying owl. However, for Petunia and Dudley's surprise. Vernon entered the kitchen with a giant smile on his large face and a bottle of wine in his hand.

''Good news Pet! We can finally have the vacation we always wanted! '' the matriarch of the Dursley started her husband with disbelief. Never she had to see Vernon with such smile since the birth of Dudley or his promotion at the company.

''Vacation? But Vernon, we can't leave now. Dudley must follow his diet, he had trouble walking into the bathroom this morning! ''It not my fault if the entrance is too small,'' Dudley whined. Vernon shrugged.

''Rabbit food will do nothing but harm to him Pet. What Dudley really needs is being in a sport that he can excel in.'' As much he hated to admit, Dudley's health started to become an issue and by the report of the school nurse, Dudley may have a heart attack.

''Well, what about the boy then?" asked Petunia. Vernon's smile became even larger.

''More great news. I made a deal with the boy and he agreed to leave us alone for two entire summers! Amazing right?'' the mouth of Petunia and Dudley's jaw drops at the new piece of information.

''You did what!''

''I gave ten thousand pounds to the freak if he agreed to stay away from us for two entire summers. Can you imagine that Pet, two years without him or those freaks causing chaos in our lives?" Petunia was speechless, she imagined a life without knowing the existence of magic and the last link toward her sister, but yet, something deep inside in her, an almost inexistent conscience. Something was not feeling right. How Vernon made a huge decision without her contentment and opinion. Granted, if she had the opportunity to get rid of her nephew, she will do it with no hesitation, however, she made a deal with Albus Dumbledore to care for her nephew. She could have sent Harry toward her relative on her mother's side in the United States, despite she lost all contact. Then, something sparked in her mind, what if, Dumbledore knew somehow what her husband did. Petunia Dursley could care less if magical nephew was injured or in danger, she did her part of her deal. She had no more obligation to house Harry, anymore.

''Where did you find this money, Vernon?'' the patriarch of the Dursley family dropped his smile as he put his bottle of wine on the table. His large pink face had turned completely white, this strange behavior alarmed the blond-haired woman. She never seen Vernon this calm, except when they remove Dudley's pigtail. During the interval, Dudley ate his portion of grapefruit along with a feeling of irritation, ignoring the current conversation of his parents.

''The company got a partnership with interesting company and they give me a bonus." Petunia raises an eyebrow at the odd replied of her husband.

"What kind of partners?" Petunia with suspicion.

"I can't tell their names. It's against the company policy." something was not feeling right. Vernon would brag about how new investors or partnerships would bring the company into international markets. However, this lack of enthusiasm for such a promotion was unbelievable.

''Vernon, did you deal with shady men?'' Vernon put his large hands on his wife's shoulders with a reassuring smile, covered by his large mustache.

''Pet, this nothing to worried about. With the freak out of our way, we can finally have a quite normal vacation. Just you, me and our son. What did you think?'' Petunia didn't say anything, feeling conflicted by the strange behavior of her husband and the departure of her nephew. Strangely, The blonde-haired woman couldn't understand her own emotions, ordinarily, the departure of her nephew should bring her happiness and a feeling of relief, yet, she couldn't help but, wonder where Harry currently was. Petunia quickly chased this thought away and let tentative smile show on her lips.

''Perhaps a real family vacation would be good for us. Without the boy in our way, we can have some peace.'' Vernon beamed, kissing his wife's forehead as he rubbed Dudley's hair who was completely unaware of the conversation of his parents and didn't notice the lack of his cousin's presence. Trying to absorb the news, the best she could, Petunia Dursley was lost in an inner battle inside in her head, meanwhile, Dudley whined at the taste of his grapefruit.

''It tastes funny'' said Dudley at loud, unaware of the disbelieving expression on his mother's face.

* * *

Meanwhile,

Our new duo of friends by strange circumstances decided to stop the day by squat the house of Tony's late butler. Their first choice was to go toward a hotel, but unfortunately, the young CEO's infamous reputation would attract the eyes of the media and shady journalists. Tony taking a hotel room with a young teenage boy and his owl would give a scandal quite unorthodox. By reluctance, Tony decided to use the unoccupied, yet maintained the house of Edwin Jarvis and his late wife Ana. Tony, himself never put his feet in the house but was talked at loud by the late butler. The house was nothing special, big enough for a family of five people, good neighborhood and near London. It was mostly used for vacation purposes as the couple's main home is located in New York. Surprisingly, Tony had inherited it from Jarvis as well all of his possessions.

''Here we go, this is Jarvis's summer house. And before you ask, there is three TV with cable and the Internet, I think?'' Harry didn't seem to listen to the young billionaire as the raven-haired boy was drawn by the decoration of the house. This is the third muggle house that Harry had seen and yet, he couldn't help himself but compare with 4 Privet Drive.

''It seems they a have a better taste in decor than my aunt.'' Hedwig who was flapping in the living room let a hoot of an agreement. Tony was perplexed by the intelligence of the Snowy Owl and that Harry could understand her correctly. Just like him and his bots.

''I know this is none of my business but how did you an owl as a pet? Usually, kids have a cat or dog, goldfish if they're extremely lazy.'' Hedwig sits on Harry's shoulder, then a sharing an odd look when they stare Tony as if he had grown another head.

''What do you mean? It it not normal having an owl was a pet?'' asked Harry, which Hedwig let out a hoot of confirmation.

''Well, owning an owl is not that uncommon but holding a bird who is from the arctic regions of Canada and Europe?'' Harry mentally cursed himself. How he could easily forget this detail. Having Hedwig for the last three years made him forget that having a bird of prey was frowned upon by certain adults. Hedwig remembered the glances at her when Harry brings her to his relative's house.

''I got Hedwig as a gift from one of my friends in school. He said that former owner tried to sell her. She has huge standards." Hedwig let a hoot of opposition to Harry and Tony's amusement.

''I'm sorry Hedwig but you're quite the princess,'' the white owl hooted angrily and Harry frowned in return.

''How could it be my fault? If the other owls can't stand you, then, you're better without them,'' Tony couldn't help but smile at the debate between the teenager and snowy owl. Tony never see a pet or an owl this close with an intelligence near or identical to a human. It reminds him of his bots. All of the sudden, his cellphone vibrated from his pocket. With a look, Tony unlock the phone, then put on near, mentally prepared himself for the wrath of Rhodey or Hope, personally, he hoped that was Rhodey who made the call. Hope would probably tear him a new hole infested with fire ants.

''Tony on the phone?''

''Jesus Tony! What the hell where are you been? We tried to contact you for five days Tony, five days. Hope had constantly nagged me to found your sorry ass. I think one of my ears going deaf of her'' Tony mentally cursed. Rhodey or Hope alone was bad enough but both of them on his ass was the end game. Unfortunately for him, he winced at the sound of a voice that he's quite familiar.

''Excuse me? Sorry if I show concern when one of my best friends going missing without telling anyone James! We got nothing from him, no phone call, email or making scandals in the news!''

''To be fair, it's quite an accomplishment on Tony's part. he beat the record of two days straight without making an ass of himself,'' said Rhodey, although it didn't appease the young woman on the phone. Tony could easily imagine the red face glaring invisible daggers at him.

''And I didn't drink since I put my foot on Queen Elizabeth's land. I consider this as progress.'' Tony heard the sigh of exasperation coming from Rhodey's mouth through the phone.

''Yes Tony, this is good progress for someone like you.''

''Don't you think that you're safe Anthony Edward Stark. Your ass is not safe from my foot!'' Tony gulped at the threat. Hope was using his full name, which means it going to resolve in two situations. Hope to kick his ass or to call Aunt Peggy, worse, the two actions in one. During the interval, Harry, and Hedwig witnessing the strange conversation thought the strange Muggle device. Harry concluded that the small and strange-looking object was a portable telephone. He remembered from Hermione's explanation that the device can do everything that the telephone accomplishes but better.

''She seems lovely'' Harry said dryly. He didn't want to cross path with the women on the phone. Hedwig was standing still on the raven-haired boy shoulder in silence, listing the conversation with interest.

''In my defense Hope, I told my secretary to leave you guys a message.''

''Your secretary quitted one week ago Tony?'' the young billionaire cursed, he should trust Happy to bring the messages in the future.

''That's right, I completely forgot about it. I should really stop judging candidate their looks over their skills.''

''For the sake of the company and my sanity, you should Tony.''

''Why did you leave without telling us, Tony?'' the black-haired man feels the capability rising up, inside him. Since they meet as kids, the young genius forgets that even though she hates to show it, Hope van Dyne has trouble with people disappearing into her life without explanation. It's started with her mother, Janet van Dyne who died in plane crash when she was seven years old. Tony remembered that day. A seven year old Hope was in the brightest mood and showed him her collection of dead insects and a large ant farm, built by her father, Hank Pym. Hope was very proud of her collection, most girls her age and their snobbish parents give her odd looks and whisper that such passion was unimaginable. She didn't mind them, never having been a girl that cared about her looks and be clean twenty-four hours. She would rather play with Tony or with the boys. Some mothers would complain of her unladylike behavior to Janet. Unfortunately for them, the wife of Hank Pym was quite proud of the tomboy attitude of her little wasp. Tony did have few memories of the late mother. She was kind and full of spirit just like Hope before she got the news. Tony would never forget the devastated look on his playmate when they announced her death. Hope lost all happiness, the things she enjoyed as a kid made angry and sour. She would even snarl at the mention of her estranged father, granted Tony didn't really know the older man. Hank Pym didn't like him for the simple reason of being the son of Howard Stark. It didn't bother him, just because his late father treated his coworkers like shit didn't mean that he would do the same.

But after being sent to boarding school at ten, passing a punk phase, learning martial arts and seeing a couple of shrinks. Hope van Dyne was fine, most of the time in his opinion anyway.

''Look, I'm sorry guys, I got a message about Jarvis's death and the day of his funeral. I didn't take it well and I flew immediately to London to make in time. However, I couldn't bring me to show up and I chicken out.'' Hope and Rhodey didn't say a word, trying to digest the last piece of information.

''Jarvis is gone?'' said Hope in a whisper, clearly affected by the sudden revelation. Any feelings of frustration and animosity disappear, leaving a sentiment of emptiness. She remembered Edwin Jarvis, he was one of the kindest and most patient men she saw in her life, Hope thought that Jarvis must have had nerves of steel to deal with Tony's antics, granted, most of the male figures in her life turned out to be disappointments. He was in her top ten. For James Rhodes, Edwin Jarvis was a better parental figure for Tony than Howard Stark. Rhodey admits that his knowledge about Howard Stark was limited on Tony's anecdotes and some time, they're not relatable. But Jarvis the man who helped him, Hope and someone undesirable to get Tony back on his feet after the murder of his parents. The death of Howard didn't affect him but Maria Stark's case was the opposite.

''Pretty much, he died in his sleep. I'm glad he didn't suffer through, especially for someone of his age. If Jarvis was in his prime, he would probably be kicking my ass for what I did this afternoon.''

''What did you to Tony?'' Asked Rhodey curiously and with the inner hope that the black-haired self-proclaimed super genius didn't sleep with some stranger belonging to an important family.

''I bet it's going to be very interesting'' Hope added dryly.

''This is a funny story. I broke a bottle of wine that cost six hundred pounds on the floor.''

''That it? I thought that you offended some noble or the royal family,'' Rhodey seem relieved.

''Six hundred pounds is relatively expensive for a bottle of wine?'' Harry wondered aloud. Although the Lockhart's entire collection did cost a small fortune same as his broom.

''Not when you're full of cash.''

''Must be a rich people thing then,'' said Harry who shrugged his shoulders.

''Tony, who you speaking to?'' They must have heard Harry talking.

''I was coming to the second part. I broke the bottle, then some random kid walks up to me and asks if I was alright. Then, we bonded over the fact that both of our parents had died by a car accident. We created the club of people who loses their parents. His name is Harry Potter if you asking, then, we decided a to do little bit of shopping and eat at Burger King. We talked for a while on a park bench and we ended our day by crashing in...Jarvis's summer-house for the night,'' if Tony Stark was with them, he probably sees the face of Hope and Rhodey are completely taking off-guard. They did expect many things but this situation was not even in their top ten.

''Tony, did you just date a teenager?''

''What! Heck no. What do you think I am?''

''Sound like a date for me Tones.''

''Let me get straight, you found a kid in the street of London and you go shopping without my advice?"

"Hope focus."

''Let me get straight, you found a kid in the street of London and you go shopping without my advice?"

"Hope, this is not the time!"

"That's right, scolding Tony first, shopping comes next" Rhode let a sigh of desperation.

"Now Tony, start from the beginning again and clearly this time. Or else I am going to tell my mom and Miss Carter, " Tony instantly blanched. He could deal the wrath of Hope, however, Roberta Rhodes and Peggy Carter was suicide.

"No need to be extreme! Alright, for the beginning, I bought a bottle of wine. Then, I broke it on the floor to my frustration. After that, Harry, the kid who is currently with me, talked to see if I was okay. We then started to bond with the fact that both of our parents have died in a car accident.''

''What about this guardians, Did you ask for their permission'' Rhodey could hear the snort from the young CEO and the teenager.

''This not is necessary, his uncle gave money to Harry to stay away from them for two summers. And based on what he told me, they will not give a damn if he went missing or kidnapped'' Rhodey and Hope who were listing the conversation were taken aback with the new piece of information. both adults don't know how to process.

''You're joking right Tones?''

''I wish. I can give the phone to Harry for confirmation if you still have doubts on this so-called date'' said Tony carefully. Hope didn't say a word, which in another situation, Tony would have enjoyed the silence but right now, it didn't feel right.

''It fine Tones, just want to make sure you don't get your ass in court for child molestation. When do you plan to get back'' Tony cursed himself. The thought of coming home never crossed his mind.

''I don't know Rhodey, give me two or three weeks max. I have things to do for the company, finding a new secretary and dealing with Harry.'' Tony explained. Rhodey seems satisfied by the answer and says goodbye. Satisfied, Tony closed his phone and returns his attention to Harry who stared the picture of the late owner in their youth.

''What's up buddy'' Tony stand at Harry's side.

''This is him right''

''Yup and this woman was his wife, Ana. She was a nice woman, they meet during before, or after World War Two I think. When she was coming by to see Jarvis, she always gives me some treats that Howard would not allow, at the discretion of course.''

''They did have any children?'' Tony shook his head.

''Ana was barren but that never bothered them, for long as I remember I only see happiness with those two''

''Well I glad they still found happiness. They seem to be nice people'' Harry said. Then, he noticed the lack of presence of the snowy owl on Harry's shoulder or in the living room.

''Where's Hedwig? She was here a minute ago?'' said Tony who looking for any trace of the white bird until he saw one window open.

''She wants to hunt tonight and usually, she is in her cage during the summer,'' Harry explained.

''She would be okay? I mean, she will remember the house right?''

''There is no need to worry. Hedwig can find me everywhere I go. You could say that she had her own personal radar,''

''She must feel the magnetic fields or just possess an intelligence higher than the average for an owl,'' Tony mumbled for the young wizard fascination and bewilderment.

''Just don't let her know. Her ego is already big enough. At this rate, she would be too heavy to fly,'' Tony snorted at the comment. How many times he heard that phrase.

''By the way, sorry for all this drama, Hope is not that terrifying, she could be nice, most of the time when someone doesn't mention her father or criticize her outfit. Those days are rare.'' Tony rubbed the back of his neck. Old memories of men and women ended up in very bad shapes came back to haunt him.

"She sounds lovely," Harry said dryly. He would rather deal with the Basilisk again than risk getting on the that woman's bad side.

"She's a treasure," Tony replied in the same tone. "Fortunately for me, she doesn't sting like a real wasp. Can you imagine if someone like her was capable of shrinking to the size of an ant?" Harry frowned at the thought.

"It would be terrifying, lucky for us, this is just a thought." This ability would have allowed Sirius to escape the Dementors.

"Well, everything about shirking is not my cup of tea. My jam is to build things" Harry raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Really?" Harry asked with interest.

"Yeah, my thing is to build machines and robots." the young wizard stared at Tony with awe.

"Wicked," Harry muttered before letting out a yawn of fatigue.

"We shall call it a night. Clearly, you need a good night of sleep and so do I." Tony was feeling tired as well.

"Already? Did we talk that long?" Harry rubbed his eyes after removing his glasses.

"Look at that. Already one at a clock of the morning. To think we talked this long."

"It didn't bother me though. You're the first adult that I found interesting since I debuted high school" Tony was taken off guard by Harry's words. Most people would be annoyed at this point. Yet the young boy didn't seem bothered. Tony could help but let a slight smile on his lips.

"You're a good kid," Harry tilted his head to the left side.

"What did I do Tony?''

"Nothing, time to be taken away by The Sandman or Morpheus, I don't care which one, your call,'' said, Tony, as they left the living-room, walking toward the stairs to the first floor. Tony had to show Harry a simple bedroom with one bed, a wardrobe and one window. The room was far larger than his current room at the Dursley's residence.

''For an uninhabited house, it is quite well maintained.'' Harry examined his surroundings.

''I usually hire someone to take care of the house. This is the least I can do for them. It's also a good spot to hide from the paparazzi.'' Tony explained as Harry put his bags on the freshly clean bed.

''This room is far better compared to the room my aunt give me. Tony, if it's okay with you can I can open the window, in case Hedwig returns from her flight?'' Tony shrugged his shoulder without a care.

''Go ahead., it would be considered as a dick move if we left out our roommates outside. Have a good night kiddo'' Tony give a small nod to Harry who nodded back at the departure of the black haired foreigner.

''Good Night Tony,''

''You too nest-brain,'' Harry sighed at his new official nickname. ''He will not let it die anytime soon'' sighing again, the young wizard toward the window and opened, as he was about to turn his tracks, something strange happened. Everything around him had turned pitch black and the only source of light was a small blue Butterfly who was passing by. Harry glanced the small butterfly with curiosity and confusion. The butterfly seemed to notice his presence as it fluttered above his head. Never in his life, Harry saw a butterfly near this close or blue one for that matter. The Dursleys never let him go on school trips or to the park. Suddenly, he heard a strange voice calling out to him in his head.

'You're held captive by the strings of fate. A prisoner of a future already planned to your demise. Everything you thought knew is the only scratch on the surface and the pieces is already in motion. Your chances of escaping are none. But if my voice is reaching you, there is a possibility open to you. I beg you. Please overcome this inner struggle and save your world. The key to your victory is accepting your inner self and forge your own path. It will begin sooner than you may think and for the sake of every dimension as well as your own, do not tarnish my expectations.'

The Blue Butterfly removed itself from the room, leaving the young wizard alone, trying to understand the cryptic message as everything turns black in an instant.

* * *

At seventeen years old Harry was taken agape by the strange memories that clouded his dreams since to this day. The message was indeed clear in his mind but yet again, sometimes, it felt like there were some piece missing. Amelia glanced at the raven-haired young man who lost within his thoughts with worry in her cold gray orbs.

''It's everything alright Harry?'' she asked in a cold and rigid tone but Harry could sense the distress from the older woman.

''I've seen better days. They tried to drug me with trust serums, They had a hard time piercing my skin so they used pills, too bad for them, They never meet someone with high regeneration like me, maybe expect Wade...Logan or Laura and Sabertooth, that's right I even forgot about this asshole, Daken. To make things simple, everyone one involved with Logan. ''

''Harry, focus!'' Amelia wanted to slam her hands on a table but she realized she forgot to conjure one. To Harry's intrigue, a long table of metal properties popped in the air between the two wizards. Then, Amelia smacks her hands on the long table. Once again, Harry was taken by surprise. Annoyed by the sudden noise, he rubbed his temples as he glared the red-haired woman with annoyance.

''What's the deal of bringing a table if it is just to get on my nerves?''

''To remind you this no time to play a game, Harry James Potter! Hear me out Harry, I'm not here because I wanted to see you behind Shield's bars or for the Wizarding World's sake. A huge amount of people has questions and unsurprisingly, you are the best witness they can find. They seem ultimately agreed that the leader of The Marvel Knights is the most reliable source'' Harry rolled his eyes in disbelief.

''Lucky for me I guess. So what your role in that case? By judging our relationship, it quite unprofessional to interrogate me if they start to use the argument of personal bias?'' Amelia let a little smirk escape her lips.

''Not your first rodeo huh? Seem they taught something useful in your private school huh?''

''More like private lessons,'' Harry said as the red-haired woman takes a paper with a pencil from her handbag.

''As you previously said, my role, in this case, is acting as your lawyer and by signing this contract, this will cover your ass if the prosecutor tried to find any dirt on you and your friends.'' Harry had taken the papers in his hands and started to read it, after a couple of minutes, he furrowed his brows.

''I see, they want us to say that everything happens under guise to lose their faces. Didn't expect that from Shield and MI13'' Harry replied with a sarcastic tone.

''Who wants to be outclassed by a group of teenagers?'' then Amelia glanced at her watch, seeing how much time she had left with the Boy Who Lived, she had to make things fast.

''And for further information, when the prosecutor will enter this room, can you please be on your best behavior?'' Harry nodded his head in agreement, feeling no joy of what coming. Amelia put her hands on his cold hands, seeing her pleading expression.

''I'll try but no promises,'' Harry said simply as he adopted a more serious demeanor, the fate of his friends were in jeopardy. Soon after, Amelia left the room after explaining that will watch the procedure in another room, most likely with Nick Fury and his trusted agents. Harry had to wait for couple of minutes before a newcomer entered the room. This time, Harry decided to put on a mask of indifference as soon he recognized the newcomer. It was a young teenage woman with pale skin, covered with freckles, long red hair asymmetrically parted on her right side and cold blue eyes covered with black glasses. She wore a black business suit with a black turtleneck. Her blazer's cuffs and the lower part had clamshell-like designs and dark gray high heels. The woman glanced at Harry and was taken aback. The stare of the young captive was anything but warm.

''To be honest, I didn't expect it to be you."

''And I expected someone older,'' Harry replied back annoyed. The stranger didn't reply back to the insult, instead, she maintains her calm demeanor.

''From now on, you will be answering my questions this time, it's simple, you answer my questions and we will let you go. And I hope you can answer them honestly. We don't have the luxury to waste any time and I believe your time is limited am I right?'' Harry didn't say a word. The prosecutor had taken the silence as an answer. She took some portfolios from her crocodile skinned back and put them on the table.

''By listening to your conversation with Ms. Bones, the date of this incident matched your testimony, although there're pieces missing in this puzzle.'' She opened the portfolio full of pictures, then passed them to Harry with hesitation as he stared the pieces of conviction. The pictures revealed the body of an overly large man filled with bruises, cuts, and the large body completely drained. Harry may have never recognized the body only for the thick mustache of his late uncle Vernon. One picture exposes the injured head of Vernon Dursley. His nose seems to be fractured in multiple places. The upper side of the head seems missing piece, resulting from a violent blow or a gun. The raven-haired teenager noticed by looking other pictures that he was out by force from the Dursley family car.

'' The incident had taken place the same day that your uncle had left you After the incident, the police had no pieces of DNA on your uncle's body. The testimony of your relatives was odd and vague, any information we have didn't make sense until the next day, they found another body in the similar circumstance but unfortunately, both victims have no connection, it leads us to think these a killer loose in the streets of London. Furthermore, it was the same day you decided to visit London,'' she reveals another picture but this time it was the young wizard who followed another teenager.

''So tell me, Potter, what exactly happened that day?'' Harry stayed silent until the picture was taken from his hands.

''It all started that day, the day that everything started to go to shit,'' Harry said as old memories started to rise to the forefront of his mind.


	3. The Awakening

AN: Sorry to not post any update since November, life can be quite occupied but I'm back with a new chapter with the help of my beta, InsertImaginativeNameHere, hope you enyoy this chapter

Chapter 3: The Awakening

Vernon Dursley was a happy man. Not only had he scored a huge deal for his company and earned a huge bonus, he was able to get rid of his nephew for two whole summers. No cake floating in the living room, no bloody owls squatting his house but the cherry on the top was no presence of Harry. Petunia, his wife seemed to be bothered a bit, fearing that the freaks would notice his lack of presence but she was happy no less. Meanwhile, Dudley seemed not to have noticed or care about Harry's departure. Dudley was still in a bad mood since the start of his regime.

Vernon hummed himself a little tune as he adjusted his tie in front of the mirror. For celebrating their first summer without magical influence, the entire family had decided to eat in a fancy restaurant that just opened in London. Dudley was enthusiastic about the news; he was beaming at the thought of eating expensive foods to Vernon's amusement and Petunia's dismay. However, the matriarch of the Dursley family didn't share the sense of festivity. Since he mentioned the huge contract of the company and the surprisingly large sum of money from his bonus, Petunia had shown an uncharacteristic interest in the company's affairs. Usually, Vernon would have expressed his joy of the sudden interest of his wife but he decided to leave his wife in the dark.

''Dad, can you help me? I can't reach the buttons.'' Dudley was struggling to do up his shirt. The young boy had gained so much weight over the years that Vernon had to loan on his entire outfit and strangely, his father didn't seem to mind.

''Let me help you son.'' Vernon attached the buttons without any difficulty as Dudley felt tight already.

''Pretty excited, son?'' Vernon asked.

''Yeah, Mum believes that I need a diet because the chair at school is not hard enough and she decided to believe everything the school nurse said."

''That just rubbish, men like us don't need rabbit food to lose weight. Hear me out son, first thing tomorrow, we will be at the gym practicing boxing.''

''Boxing! Whoa, fantastic dad!" Vernon beamed at his son's reaction. This day couldn't get any better for the Dursley family, especially for Dudley. His father got a large sum of money, his parents didn't bother to ask for his school marks and he would practice a sport, nothing could break this bubble of happiness, even his weird cousin.

Dudley didn't even notice the lack of Harry's presence, not that he would have minded. Although, Dudley would pay to see the reaction of his cousin if they decided to bring take out. Harry would simply shrug out, what a buzzkill. The two Dursley men returned to their previous occupation when meanwhile, Petunia nearly finished getting dressing at her side, when abruptly, she heard the doorbell.

Curious, she left the master bedroom to walk toward the door with a thought in mind that her nephew decided to return or Dumbledore was ready to scold her for failing her only responsibility toward Harry. However, both of her guesses were wrong as she opened the door; it was a stranger instead. It was a man, extremely attractive. He was tall, reaching six feet and three inches, black hair that was slicked back, icy blue eyes that were hypnotic and a pale complexion, similar to those who never tanned or ever set foot outside. His attire consisted of an expensive black suit with a red tie only the rich could afford. The stranger lets a smile on his face, showing his perfect white teeth. His appearance seemed too perfect for the woman's taste.

"Good evening, is this the household of the Dursley family?"

Petunia broke from her trance.

"It is, yes. Do you have any business with us?" Petunia asked suspiciously as she frowned.

"Forgive my manners, Miss Dursley, I didn't present myself. I am Falworth, John Falworth, I am one of the newest associates of your husband." Petunia's curiosity reached new heights. Something weird was going on and she didn't like it one bit.

"My husband's associate? Are you from the newest partners that he failed to mention?" Petunia was on her guard, her instincts were on alert. The strange man lets a small smile appear on his lips, almost hypnotizing. Petunia would have let herself fall for his charms if she didn't have suspicions. She got weird vibes from this man.

"In simple terms, yes but your husband's company and I are far more than simple associates. My company is interested in new blood. Although, this is something we can't share with the general public. My employer fears that the competition may participate as well," John Falworth finished with a smile.

"I was not aware of that. It's true that most small companies can't rival massive corporation such as Stark Industries and Oscorps. But this is a reason why my husband couldn't share the news with his spouse?"

The man was taken aback, surprised by the declaration but he quickly regained his composure.

"Indeed, by watching your husband during the meeting. I concluded that he was someone who likes to bring about his accomplishments. Although, he was acting oddly at the end of the meeting. By the testimony of his colleagues, they had never seen that kind of behaviour in twenty years."

Something was indeed happening with her husband Petunia thought as she recalled, Vernon had strange behaviour since the beginning of June. He started to work late at the company, only eat half of his large portion, sleeping half the night, paler than usual. At first, she thought that Vernon was cheating on her with her new secretary, some red-haired gal who just got off of university and quit her part-time job as a model. However, she disproved this theory with two factors. Vernon had no skill of subtlety, he was the type of man who loved to brag about his accomplishments and another reason which she was embarrassed to admit; Vernon was one of the least sexually active men in the neighbourhood. She doesn't mind at first, she had her share of experience in her youth until she met Vernon, who was raised in a conservative environment. Their only sexual intercourse was the night of their honeymoon and Dudley's conception. But she did envy the women who shared their experiences during book nights.

"Now you mentioned, Vernon was indeed strange this morning after he left for King's Cross.''

John raised an eyebrow at the new information. ''Is that right? Is any particular reason why your husband had to go King's Cross?"

Petunia blanched immediately by her mistake, cursing herself for slipping her tongue. ''My nephew!'' she said abruptly. ''My nephew Harry had decided to say with one of his friends for the entire summer and Vernon proposed to take him to the station,'' the pale-skinned man stared Petunia with cold blue eyes, Petunia felt uneasy under the questioning look as her heart was beating fast.

''It's quite a shame, I would like to ask the opinion of your nephew. Another time perhaps. It would help the investigation to have the testimony of the entire family.''

Petunia let a sigh of relief. "Is there anything that I can help you with Mr. Falworth?'' she wanted to end this conversation with the strangely attractive man.

''I'm sorry if I take your time Miss Dursley but if you help by answering three questions, I will be gone before your husband comes downstairs.''

Petunia was relieved.

"Your husband's company had noticed that some money has been missing since the beginning of June and sources said that your husband suddenly got himself a new sports car. Did you see or heard about this?" Petunia's blue eyes narrowed. Vernon did buy a sports car claiming to be Dudley's sixteen years birthday present, although he was too young to drive, and she didn't ask where the money came from since it brightened her son's mood. Something was indeed wrong and she thanked any kind of gods that the car was not in the parking lot. She shook her head in response.

''Alright then, second question. Did your husband talk or mention someone particularly?'' Petunia shook her head once again. Vernon never talked about work at home.

''And lastly, do you any kind of information on his secretary?''

''I'm deeply sorry but I know nothing of the supposed accusations on my husband. But if there is any truth, I would be the first person to have noticed. Vernon had many qualities but subtlety is not one of them,'' Petunia replied with confidence, hoping that her speech managed to convince the pale stranger.

''I guess my job here is done. I'm deeply sorry if I took up your time Mrs. Dursley. I'll not bother you anymore,'' John said as he took a card from his wallet and gave it to Petunia.

''If there is anything suspicious or information you find contact me at this number. Have a good evening, ma'am." John was about to turn around as Petunia stopped him in his tracks.

''What if my husband was involved in those rumours. What would be the consequences?'' she asked nervously.

''Vernon Dursley must pray to God if he wants to see his son reaching sixteen. Goodnight Mrs. Dursley.''

Petunia stood frozen as she watched the stranger leaving the neighbourhood in a fancy sports car. The last sentence coming from the man sounded like a threat to her family, especially her beloved son, Dudley. She doesn't know what kind of business Vernon put himself but there was no way she would let it slide. If any anyone or anything touched any blonde curl of her baby boy, they would deal with the wrath of Petunia Evans, including her husband. Lost in her inner thoughts, the blonde haired woman didn't hear the arrival of Vernon and Dudley, ready for the big night.

''Let's go, Mum, or we're going to miss the buffet!'' Dudley couldn't be standing around, as right now, the buffet was the most important thing in the world.

''Is there something wrong, Pet?'' the large man noticed that his wife was uncharacteristically quiet. Petunia regained consciousness as she saw the two most important men in her life, standing right in front of her with impatience. She made a quick observation on her son's attire. The suit she had bought last year itself had started tearing apart. Petunia cursing herself for not paying attention to her son's statue instead, making her nephew's life miserable.

"Look at you! A handsome gentleman!" Petunia said with a strained smile. She couldn't tell the truth about her son's appearance.

"Something wrong, Pet?" Vernon frowned. He noticed the lack of enthusiasm at the sight of their son.

"I-It's nothing Vernon. I can't believe that my baby boy started to become a young man," she lied. Fortunately for her, Dudley and Vernon bought the lie as the young blond beamed at his mother's words.

"Indeed he is..." Vernon replied warmly. How much he asked for a moment like this with his family. How much he wished it for that moment of normality Vernon had waited for years to finally get rid of his freakish nephew for a year; his prayers had finally been answered with the increase in value in shares of his company and they would get rid of Harry with permanent measures. Normally, Vernon would have felt guilty for organizing the assassination of a kid but since it was the blood relative of his wife, he didn't feel any guilt. And his life would be normal thanks to the death of Harry Potter.

* * *

Meanwhile

John Falworth was not a happy man. Driving in his black sports car, the pale-skinned man glared the road in front of him as he cursed himself for his failure. The plan was simple, be invited by the Dursley's, kill Vernon and kidnapping Harry Potter. It was simple but the patriarch had to screw up his plan. Petunia Dursley was not he expected honestly, she was plain-looking but not foolish compared to her husband. He had difficulty reading her mind. Vernon, on the other hand, was a piece of cake. The man had screwed things up by stealing his money and hiding it. He would not allow this transgression. Vernon Dursley would be playing with his own life and blood. However, he could not allow himself to commit this act. He would be the primary suspect, even if it was tempting. John took out his phone from his pocket and on his ear soon as the light turn red. He typed out a number and waited for the line to be picked up. He didn't wait long as the call reached its destination. Even though he didn't hear any words, John knew someone was on the other phone.

"I got a job for you. Make sure that apart from his family there are no witnesses." The other person on the line didn't speak up but the silence was a sign of confirmation.

"And do not forget to leave the corpse in the same place and same position. MI13 and my brother will believe is the action of a serial killer. I'll count on you on this one."

"Understood," one answer was enough to close the line and return his glance to the road.

Feeling fulfilled, John Falworth left Little Whinging with a satisfied smirk.

* * *

Sometime later, with the Dursleys

It was the happiest night for Dudley Dursley. His father got a huge amount of money, he had a delicious buffet and the cherry on the top. His freak of a cousin was finally gone from their lives. Dudley could enjoy a summer relatively normal in his standards. Although the young Dursley was happy, a small part of his mind would miss the presence of his cousin, small as it was. After a good evening by their standards, the Dursley's decided to call off the night and return to their house with takeout. As Vernon was driving and holding a discussion with Petunia, Dudley was in the backseat with the takeout on his legs. During the dinner, Dudley noticed the lack of speech from his mother. Usually, Petunia would criticize any kind of food coming from foreign regions but this time, his mother stayed silent and gave a glance of interrogation at Vernon. The young boy thought it was related to his cousin, but he quickly tossed this assumption away. While he was lost in his inner thoughts, his father started a conversation.

"Anything alright, Pet?" Petunia didn't answer right away.

"Yes, Vernon" her reply was short and simple.

"I noticed you're not yourself tonight, Pet?"

"You have a great sense of observation, Vernon," she said with a sarcastic tone.

"I got a promotion and we finally got rid of the freak. I don't understand why you don't enjoy yourself." Vernon started to get annoyed.

''I-I just worried about what those freaks are going to do if they know what you did."

Vernon snorted. "Let them try! What authority has that old fool has on us? We let the boy sleep in the cupboard for ten years and they did nothing. If that old geezer cares about the freak, he would have an act-"

Vernon was about to finish his phrase when their car was hit by an impact of force. They didn't see that coming. Vernon's head hit the steering wheel, breaking his nose, the takeout fell on Dudley's feet and Petunia was barely touched. Vernon moaned in pain and he raised his head with difficulty. Before a sound escaped his mouth, the door on his side was torn apart and then Vernon was grabbed by a hand and thrown away outside the car to Petunia's horror. She let out a scream of terror. Her heart was beating fast as she and Dudley didn't understand what is going on?

At the same time, Vernon's entire body was hurting like hell. He didn't see that coming, everything happened so fast that he didn't notice the large shadow in front of him. Vernon tried to raise himself up but the extent of his injuries was so severe that he couldn't move even one of his fingers. However, the shadowy figure beat him to it as it grabbed his neck with ease. Then Vernon got a chance to see his aggressor. It had the figure of a man, completely covered with a black leather outfit, with a pair of gloves and boots in the same colour. He had several black belts strapped around his legs and arms. He also wore a dark knight helmet, similar to plate armour, with a deep crimson mask resembling a bat.

Vernon felt true terror, as two red orbs examined him from the bat-shaped mask. He started to panic as he tried to move his arm without any sign of success, the same thing for the rest of his overweight body. The strange looking person didn't move a bit, as Vernon's fate was already sealed.

Then, suddenly, Vernon heard a noise behind the back of his aggressor and to his horrible surprise, three pale-looking humans stared at him with their red eyes. There were two men and one woman. The tone of their skin was near the complexion of a fresh corpse, their clothes, dirty with dry blood and each have a metal collar on their neck. Lastly, all of them spotted two holes on their neck, a wound, which seemed to be recent. Vernon broke his examination as he moved painfully at the voice of his wife and son, calling his name with fear and incertitude.

"I-I don't care what you going to do with but leave my family alone, you freak!" Vernon snarled with all the hatred he could muster. The stranger didn't reply or move, it was standing in the same position for a minute, ignoring the cries of help of the Dursley family. Vernon had a small dose of hope, thinking that he and his family would be spared, unfortunately, the stranger threw him on the concrete floor, in front of the three collared people as a gun appeared from nothing in his other hand.

In an instant, the stranger fired straight at Vernon's head, resulting in a disgusting mess. A huge chunk of the head was spread on the floor and the rest was hard to look at. The three collared prisoners didn't lose their time as they started to feed on the blood of the fresh corpse, ignoring the Dursley family's cries of despair, who had just witnessed the death of a husband and a father only few meters away, still trapped in the car to listen to the atrocity until everything became silence. After gathering a huge amount of courage and swallowing her fear, Petunia managed to get out of the car. Her husband's corpse was gone. Petunia fell to her knees and started sobbing just as Dudley was standing next to her, staring at the small piece of flesh on the floor. For the time in his life, Dudley Dursley feels heartbreak. It was not good at all.

* * *

Next Day, London, June 25, 2004

After becoming a detective, George Stacy was ready for everything. He was ready for the day of his wedding with the love of his life Helen Warren, a woman from the United States. He was ready for the thought there was a chance that he might die on duty. He was ready when he heard that he would soon have to transfer to the NYPD because of Helen's job. He was ready when Helen announced they were going to be parents. He was also ready to be there for his lovely three years old daughter, Gwendolyn, Gwen for short, Stacy. Nevertheless, the police officer was not ready to saw a dead body pinned on Big Ben. The corpse was noticed this morning by two joggers and later identified by its family.

He considered himself lucky to have skipped his breakfast this morning, the body was not something looking forward to looking up. At first glance, someone could have mistaken the body for a dead walrus but looking closer, you would see a naked dead man covered with bruises, cuts, the upper side of its head missing and strangely, a lack of blood. Finding the gender of the victim was a no-brainer, the thick mustache was a huge pointer despite the lack of visible genitals. On the other hand, finding the identity of the victim was quite a challenge for the officer.

''How we sure this is a man? My first guest was a dead whale albino.'' George Stacy was a tall attractive man about with short pale blonde hair and blue eyes. His outfit consisted simply of his uniform. Two bags under his eyes, showing a lack of sleep. Next, to him two officers who currently guarded the body with precaution.

''We thought at first sir, but his feet are too small to be a fin and the mustache is hypnotic.''

''Any information on the victim?'

''Sadly sir, no, the body was found naked. We seem to believe that the victim was stripped before getting pinned down. And with the missing part of his head, it's going be bonkers to find its identity.''

George rubbed his chin. ''Then try to find a man in his late thirties with an overweight physique and bushy large mustache. It can be a start.''

One of the officers nodded before leaving the crime scene as another officer stood next to George.

''Last day of service, sir?''

George sighed, rubbing his eyes with frustration. ''Pretty much, it took all night to finish everything before tomorrow. Helen was very upset when she heard the call this morning,'' he answered dryly, remembering his wife's mood. The other officer nodded his head in agreement.

''I can't blame her. I was enjoying myself this morning with my wife,'' George snorted. He would rather be with his family at this moment instead of analyzing a corpse on his last day in England.

''By the way, sir, are you going to miss England?'' George said nothing as he stared lazily at the greyish sky.

''Less than I thought, there's nothing left waiting for me. My parents have been dead for many years ago and my last relative was killed sixteen years ago by a serial killer,'' George said bitterly, cursing himself for not finding the killer of his cousin. He quickly pushed that thought when he saw the face of the younger officer.

''S-Sorry sir, I'm sorry to hear about that.''

''It's fine really, I just wish back in the day we had any idea of the culprit, the only information we have is the description of a suspect with the tattoo of a skull on his forearm. This person may be dead or have left the country. But maybe I can look at the case in the plane.'' He rubbed his chin, deep in thought.

''I think your wife may be not happy about that, sir,'' the younger officer added with a nervous laugh.

''You're definitely right about that lad, Helen may never forgive me if Gwen is exposed to my work. She was okay with me being a member of New York Police Department but she can't bear the thought of Gwen being a crime fighter,'' he explained with a chuckle. However, he secretly agreed with his wife.

''I stand behind her idea. By the way, sir, you think that Sirius Black is behind this? This is possible that the victim had fallen on the hand of Black. Judging the report of this last victim, Black may have used this man to leave us a message.'' Before the blond detective could give his opinion, a voice interrupted him.

''A good hypothesis but it very unlikely. We have no sight of Black during those last few months and the lack of DNA on the victim takes him off of your suspect list, officer but good thinking.'' The voice belonged to a woman. The newcomer was a woman in her late twenties or early thirties. Long and wavy blond hair was kept in a ponytail and she had a startling pair of blue eyes. She had a slim athletic physique; she was actually quite small compared to George, reaching about five foot and five inches. Her outfit consisted of the standard uniform with a silver badge on her left breast. Her skin was quite pale, also with bags under her eyes, demonstrating a lack of sleep.

''Detective Leigh! I thought you have the day off?'' the younger officer asked.

''I was but the station had required of my services considering the fact there is a possibility it's connected with the case.''

''With the case, huh? With luck on our side, it may be a witness who saw something. Or maybe a new pieces of evidence. Anyway, it's worth looking,'' George was speaking to himself.

''That will not be necessary Detective Stacy. The Captain had to discharge you from the case. Instead, a new replacement will take your place,'' Detective Leigh replied simply enough, a look of annoyance installed on her face. George was bothered.

"When things started to become interesting. At least my wife and my daughter will be happy about this. Anything I can do Detective Leigh?"

The blonde woman did answer as she simply hugged the taller detective."Never lower your back, and come visiting the force when you can." She let a smile escape.

"Look luck with the case." George saluted the younger officer as he left the crime scene.

"It's a shame that Detective Stacy is going to leave the force. He's one of the best."

The female detective seemed to agree. "New York could learn two things from an incorruptible detective. Although, the timing of the case couldn't be more deplorable."

"Maybe it's a one time deal? I-I mean we didn't find any trace of DNA of the culprit on the victim's body," the young officer added.

"Which makes the case even more suspicious, we should stay on our guard," Detective Leigh responded as they return to their work, still clenching the sentiment of death.

* * *

Meanwhile, with Harry and Tony

It was the best morning of Harry's life. No screams from his aunt or uncle. No obligation of making breakfast for two walking black holes and especially no chores. Harry almost wanted to thank any kind of deity who had planted this brilliant suggestion in his uncle's mind. However, Harry was lost for what to do with his time. With no chores or plans, the young teenager could easily lay lazily in his conformable bed but his body had plans on it own just as his stomach demanded nourishment. With a lazy sigh, the raven-haired teenager got up from the comfy bed, then toward the kitchen only to see Tony and Hedwig getting breakfast. Tony was eating an omelette with a cup of coffee in his hand while the snowy owl was currently boldly tearing apart a piece of bacon. By hearing the step of the young teenager, Tony's brown eyes stared Harry with a small smirk glinting in his gaze.

''Well, well, Nest Brain finally left his perch to get breakfast. Hedwig didn't wait for you though, soon she smelled bacon, she was in her own paradise. By the way, do owls normally even eat bacon? If not, then she's dope as fuck'' Tony complimented the white owl to Harry's disbelief. Hedwig didn't seem to hear as she was in her own pleasure.

''I think she's the only one, which makes her unique, although she must be careful with her weight.'' Hedwig suddenly dropped her bit of bacon, then turned to her owner and gave a loud shriek, followed by raising her wings furiously. Tony judged by snowy owl's dark glare, she was one hundred percent pissed at the mention of her weight.

'Damn, she reacts the same way when someone talks about Hope's diet. This owl gets cooler every time she appears' Tony stared Hedwig with awe as Harry quickly raised his hands as a sign of forgiveness.

''I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Forget everything that I said. You're beautiful just the way you are.''

Feeling satisfied, Hedwig stop her hysterical crisis and returned to her bit of bacon to Tony's amusement and Harry's annoyance.

''This girl, she's going to drive me crazy,''

''Well this is the first lesson of your teenagehood Harry, never and I mean it, criticize or even talk the weight of women. Especially in public, this right now is nothing compared to the others women out there,'' Tony explained with a serious tone.

''But why? Is it is some sort of taboo or curse?'' Harry tilted his head to his right side.

''You poor sweet child. Women are very conscientious of their body, especially around weight. The reason why, I don't know and I don't want to. One time, I asked my friend Hope and if I translate her glare correctly, she would stab me with an armada of insects.''

Harry's skin paled at the horrifying thought as he imagined the scene in his mind. ''Girls are bloody scary.''

Tony snorted at the remark.''You have no idea kid. Let's talk about serious business. What did you plan to do for your summer vacation? As much as I want to stay with you, I've kinda got, y'know, grown up things to do and I can't just chuck you back to the streets. So Harry, any kind of plans?'' Toney asked seriously. He would rather hang out with his new friend, however, he couldn't ignore his responsibilities of CEO, much he wanted to.

''Well, I have one friend who can but I don't know where she lives. I've got her phone number but I don't have a phone. I have another friend who I know the location where he lives but it's too far away and he doesn't have a phone. My relatives aren't an option. Apart from my summer homework, I have nothing planned except to catch everything that I miss during the entire year. You know teenager stuff.''

''Well, in that case. I could let you crash here. I mean, I would make sure that you have some kind of adult supervision and you have to keep the home clean once in a while.''

Harry's green eyes widened at the proposal. Granted, he would need to hide evidence of magic but it was good for Harry.

"I can cook for myself and cleaning a house is not that hard. My aunt forced me to clean her house," Harry explained with indifference. Tony frowned a bit. The more he heard about Dursley family, the more he was disgusted by their actions, which made him wonder how Harry turned out fine.

"That's good. Because you look quite skinny. Let make some rules. I don't mind if you invite friends but no parties. I want you to call me if I am not here. You have to be here before midnight and lastly, if you have any kind of problem and there are no adults in this house, feel free to ask around the neighbourhood. Pretty simple." Harry simply nodded his head in understanding. He had no qualms with those rules.

"I think I will manage but I don't have a phone."

"That's why I already asked if you answer was yes," Tony placed a rather looking stylish cellphone in Harry's hands. Harry contemplated the device with awe and disbelief.

"It looks fantastic!" The device was small and rectangular with a long flat screen, a small camera on the back, two inches of thickness. It had a black and red cover with a gray logo that Harry found odd.

"Glad you like it. It's a new product that I plan to release on the market in the next years. You're one of the few people in the world to possess a Stark Phone. I already put my number and the restaurant nearby. I even installed a guide to help you if you can't use it. This phone is bulletproof, fireproof, waterproof, it has its own network and it possesses its own AI. It's like you have own handheld personal computer in your hand. It can do whatever a computer does but better, except for games and porn, I think.''

The young wizard's jaw dropped at Tony's last words.

''You can play games on this? This is bloody wicked!'' Harry stared his new gift with wonderment as Tony has glanced at him in disbelief.

'He didn't even react at porn? Guess he didn't hit that stage yet.'

The two friends resumed their breakfast until Tony's phone started to vibrate.

''Stark!'' Tony put his phone on the right side of his head as Harry resumed to eat his omelette. The young millionaire didn't say a word as he finally closed his phone. The expression on his face was unreadable.

''Something wrong, Tony?'' Harry asked worriedly.

''Nothing important, kid, just need to be at an appointment in the next hours and I don't know when I will be back. There is fresh food in the fridge if you ask. The Internet is working as well as cable. If you want to buy anything call on this number. Before I can go, this is anything you want, Harry?''

''A-Actually there's a thing I want to ask you. I need to go to town to see if I can buy contact lens if this alright with you?'' The reason why Harry needed to go to London was to look for a gift for Tony as the young wizard felt the need to show his appreciation to the older man.

''That's a good idea, Harry. It'd also be a good idea to use those beautiful looks to attract the ladies, maybe a little haircut would not be too bad.'' Harry sent a sardonic glare his way.

''My hair is fine the way it is.''

Tony simply chuckled as he affectionately rubbed Harry's messy hair.

''We can agree on that Nest Brain.''

Harry groaned while Hedwig found his new nickname hilarious.

* * *

A few Moment later

''Here we go. You going to be alright on your own Harry?'' Harry and Tony were currently in London after in a quite interesting ride, mostly Harry asking about differences between England and the United States.

''Y-Yeah, I can find my way back. If not I can just use the GPS on the phone. Although, this is my first time alone,'' Harry replied with worry.

''Well, if you need anything just call me but don't do anything stupid. This is normal for all teenagers going out by themselves, it's a big step.''

Harry nodded in appreciation. ''I can do this, it's just a piece of cake,'' he said to himself to get more assurance.

''But don't do anything I wouldn't do and definitely don't do anything I would do,'' Tony explained as the raven-haired teenager was completely lost with the advice.

''Okay...I guess I should go right now. Have a nice trip, Tony.'' Tony suddenly approached Harry as if he was about to hug him. Completely lost, Harry hugged back awkwardly before realizing that Tony simply opened the car's door behind his back.

''This is not a hug, I just open the door for you, we are not that close yet.''

''Right...'' Harry had to get out the car before giving a last glance to Tony who was completely unfazed by his attempted hug.

'This is so awkward..'

''Bye Nest Brain!'' Tony yelled enough loud to be heard before starting the engine, leaving an embarrassed teenager who tried to avoid the curious glances of the people around him.

''There's no way that's going anywhere time soon.''

Harry started his own trip as he walked the streets of London, alone for the first of his life. He used this opportunity to use his Starkphone to take pictures of the city and the people. Clearly, this was a huge difference between London and Diagon Alley. The streets were cleaner, quieter and less colourful. Harry could also the difference of era between the buildings and the people as the muggles changed with the times, the wizards, on the other hand, seemed to be stuck in some kind of loop. Which made him wonder how the wizarding community would react at the sight of his mobile.

'I guess living in the mundane world is not all bad. Especially with the Internet.'

As Harry returned his attention to his phone and all of the sudden, he has collided with something else, causing him to nearly drop his phone as he turned his head toward the source of the contact. His gaze landed upon a young boy around his age who dropped a bunch of papers on the floor. The boy had short straight blonde hair and deep blue eyes, a long nose with pale skin and aristocratic features. His outfit consisted of a plain blue shirt with a dark blue pullover, tan pants with dark sneakers. The newcomer seemed annoyed as he knelt to pick up the papers on the floor. Harry quickly helped the stranger, feeling guilty until he saw the stranger raise his hand to stop him in his tracks.

''It's fine, I can do it myself,'' the young stranger replied although he sounded annoyed.

''I'm very sorry. I was distracted by my new phone that my friend give me.''

The blonde teenager finished grabbing his papers as he noticed the device on Harry's hand.

''What kind of phone is that?'' the stranger asked, intrigued by the strange-looking design of the phone.

''You can call it a smartphone. I got this from my friend Tony,''

''I wish I had a friend named Tony, or any friends. You should be more careful in the future, who knows what's going to happen if you get distracted by this.''

Harry's cheeks were covered with a blush of embarrassment. "Sorry, I was so absorbed by this, I didn't see you. No hard feelings?" Harry asked nervously. The stranger glanced at Harry for a bit, then looked his surroundings and return his attention to Harry and give him a small piece of paper from his jeans' pocket.

''See you in school, I guess.'' Harry tilted his head in confusion as the blonde stranger resumed his course. Not understanding what's happening, the young wizard took the small paper from his pocket and read it out loud.

''Follow me to this address?'' Harry didn't know how to process this, it could be a prank, perhaps the blonde stranger was prankster similar to Fred and George, however, the vibes given off by the boy were the opposite of the twins. He was looking too gloomy to be an act; the other possibility is that the blond may be in trouble or in danger.

''But he said that we're to meet again in school? Did he try to mention Hogwarts? But I've never seen him before. He could be a trap by some wizard or he's in trouble. The second deduction seems more plausible as he knows what a phone is.'' Harry could easily have thrown the paper away and returned to his preoccupations, nevertheless, he started to feel a bad feeling in his guts, sensing something bad was going to happen.

''I guess I've got no choice but to make sure he's okay.'' Harry resumed his walk as he finally spotted the blue-eyed teenager from afar. Watching the blonde teenager was relatively easy. Harry kept a reasonable distance between him and his target as he continued his course in the urban area in the city until his target stopped. Harry noticed that they were in the poorest part of the city and in front of the blonde stranger was a strange shady building with a red and yellow neon sign.

''The Blood Sucker? Strange name for a place,'' Harry whispered to himself as the blonde-haired boy looked around him and entered the shady-looking building. Just as Harry was about to follows him, his only way to enter was immediately blocked by a large man covered in tattoos, wearing black leather clothes and an expression that was anything but friendly. And the doorman didn't help his case as a bunch of teenagers near his age tried to enter.

''Come on, mate, we've been invited by Persephone herself! She presents me this by herself'' the leader of the group showed something that Harry couldn't see however it seemed not to have impressed the usher.

"Seems like a fake, lad, you didn't get her handwriting quite right."

The leader cursed himself for this obvious mistake."What about money? If you did not notice, I got plenty of money."

The usher raised an eyebrow. "You mean daddy's allowance? So you expect me to believe that you have enough to the pay for your mates?"

The confident look on the leader's face seemed to drop, replaced by anger.

"Fine, who even wants to go to your stupid party? I heard from friends that your parties are boring and bland!" Harry and the doorman were not impressed by the leader's tantrum. Worse, it reminded him of Malfoy.

'My options are quite low. I can't use magic or have my wand, I could use the money that lard arse gave me to enter. But there's no guarantee that would work,' thought Harry, as he summoned his inner courage and walked toward the entrance, attracting the attention of the user and the group of teenagers. Harry looked the doorman right in the eyes, fearless. The doorman's eyes widened at the sight of his brilliant green eyes, a sign of familiarity, at the same time, his expression returned to neutral.

''What do you want lad?''

''I need to stop a friend from making the big mistake of his life and I don't care what you say, I am not' leaving without him'' Harry said with determination. The tall man didn't react or respond to Harry's declaration. However, he simply pointed the door to Harry's astonishment.

''You have thirty minutes to get him out, lad, Otherwise, by the end of the day, you'll need to hide his corpse.''

Harry was taken aback, surprised that the doorman decided to let him go in the strange establishment, worried that the stranger's life as the usher sounded serious. Not wanting to waste time, the young wizard was about to enter, only to be stopped by the leader's complains.

''How come you let him enter and not us? Do you know who I am!'' Harry at glared his fellow teenager with disdain as a smirk twitched on his lips.

''Because, mate, I don't throw my life away to seek daddy's approval. Maybe if you developed the organ you call a brain, maybe your balls will finally drop off.'' Harry didn't wait for the dark-haired teenager's answer as the red blush on his face and the hysterical laughter of his friends was a good indicator how much he was humiliated. Satisfied, the young wizard resumed his course as he tried to ignore the surroundings, which was quite a hard job. Harry never heard or knew that kind of place existed. He had a hard time to not get distracted by his surroundings, every corner was filled with men and women, naked, dancing to the music and in strange activities that he found curious and inviting.

'If Mrs. Weasley or Hermione saw me in this kind of place, they'd have a heart attack,' Harry thought as the image of Hermione's dancing at this kind of place entered his mind. However, the young wizard chased this thought soon as it came up.

'This place is going to drive me crazy!' Harry started to take a deep breath as the ambience of the rave-orgy party started to heat up and the music changed its tempo. The entire room was blind with flashy colours, Harry was completely lost, he was surrounded by teenagers, young adults, dancing to the music like crazy animals with a serious lack of clothes. His own clothes started to make him sweat until something tapped on his shoulder, causing him to turned around see the same blonde haired teenager that he followed, now without his shirt and his upper body covered with sweat. The blue eyes of the young man widened as he let a sigh of relief.

''It's you again!'' Harry spoke loudly, the music was quite nosy.

''And you my saviour, it would better for us if we find a place to talk,'' the guy said as he grabbed Harry's arm, removing him from the dancefloor. A teenage girl quickly appeared in front of them with a large smile on her face. Harry quickly noticed that she was shirtless, exposing her pale breasts. He blinked as he saw the face if the girl, who didn't seem to mind. He was trying to process what he just saw. When his mind was fully connected, his entire face turns red. The teenage girl seemed older than he was, she had short brown hair with a pair of blue eyes, her skin tone was very pale, covered with various tattoos. He noticed two small holes in her long neck and piercings on her nipples. However, he failed to observe that she held a bag with red pills.

"Hey, cutie! Want some?" Harry suddenly broke from the hypnotizing view as he babbled his words to the brunettes' amusement. Feeling his distress, the blonde boy quickly acted.

''The girl he fancied rejected him to get with his best friend. If you can help change his mind, that would be very helpful,'' he said loudly enough to hear. The brunette simply smiled as she took one of the red pills, put it in her mouth and at that moment, kissed the young wizard who was understandably lost. For Harry, it happened at a slow pace, he was too much in shock that he noticed that the brunettes had used her tongue to settle the red pills in his mouth and without knowing he had swallowed it.

''Hope this will make you feel better. See you soon cutie!'' The brunette left a stunned Harry who could not comprehend that he'd had his first kiss.

''What just happened?'' Harry muttered to himself as his fellow teenager took him to a place where they could discuss. Luckily, they found an empty couch and sat down as at the same time the party extend it wildness.

''I'm sure that you have a lot of questions?''

Harry snorted.''Great sense of observation, if I knew that I would fall in with this kind of party. I should never have followed you!'' Harry yelled, annoyed as a couple suddenly sat at their side and started to copulate to Harry's astonishment.

''And they started to have sex. This day couldn't get any worse!'' Harry felt that his anger started to rise as the blonde waved his hands as a sign of denial.

''W-Wait I can explain! All of this is not of my doing!''

Harry raised an eyebrow of disbelief. ''Sure and my grandmother is the Goddess of Death,'' he said dryly.

''You have to believe me, all of this happened because of the misfortune of my own,''

''Then you better explain to me blondie, if my best friend found me like this, she would kill me,'' Harry answered dryly as he noticed that the couple were still mating.

''Well. First, I should have presented myself in the beginning. I'm Brian Braddock,'' the blonde teenager now known as Brian extended his hand, waiting for the messy-haired wizard's handshake. Harry glared at Brian's hand and cursed himself for being in this position. Reluctantly, Harry shook Brian's hand in return.

''I'm Harry Potter,'' Harry said simply, waiting for a reaction from Brian. However, the blonde simply tilted his head.

''Potter? Like James Potter?'' Brian asked with awe and excitement in his eyes.

''You mean my dad?'' Harry was completely lost.

''Exactly! My father told me that he was friends with a certain James Potter during his later years at Hogwarts. Funny enough, my father is also named James,''

''Wait, that means you're a wizard?'' Harry asked curiously. Brian nodded his head in agreement.

''Then, how come I didn't see you in school? If your dad knew my dad, it would mean that you are Pureblood or at least Halfblood.''

Brian seemed to be less enthusiastic. ''Well, my parents are both wizards from an old family, which puts me in the position of being Pureblood, but they didn't care about it. My father thinks that blood purity is going to be the downfall of the Wizarding World of Britain and he was right.''

''That sounds brilliant but that doesn't explain why we are in this place?''

''Sorry, I just got distracted by the fact that I just met another wizard like me and the son of one of my dad's best friends.''

''I understand your excitement, however, we are short on time.''

Brian's expression became serious.''I don't where to start but to make this simple. You see, three years ago, I was on vacation with my family, me, my mum and dad, Jamie my older brother and...Elizabeth, my twin sister.''

Harry's head tilted. "A twin sister?"

Brian lowered his head. "I had one. We got in an accident, me and Jamie barely survived. On the other hand, my parents were not so lucky. And as for my sister, we never found her body."

"I am very sorry about that."

Brian shrugged although it didn't stop his face reflecting the pain that he tried to hide.

"It's fine, I had three years to mourn and I've still got Jamie," he replied cheerfully, Harry didn't believe the words coming from his mouth. "Like I said, we didn't find Lisa's body until someone gives me a picture of her. I didn't know who gives the picture so I decided to go at this addresses and it brought me here. I didn't understand at first but after some digging. I found out that this place is the headquarters of an infamous cult."

Harry raised an eyebrow of disbelief. "A cult?"

"Exactly, I can assure you, Harry, that they are not the mundane kind. They are not famous in the world or the wizarding world. All I know is that most of their members are chosen in those parties," Brian explained.

"Why they are considered infamous?"

"Because they are not humans."

"You're kidding right?"

Brian shook his head in disagreement. "That's not my intention, Harry. I don't know what they are but I can tell that they chose their new recruits by doing a sacrifice. The leader of this cult chooses its targets carefully. My guess is they pick people with a lot of influence or money, which led me to that conclusion, they are the ones who sent the picture of my sister."

"Did they trick you or is it a real picture of your twin sister?"

"I don't know. The first time I got here, nobody noticed my presence and I didn't stay long. But right now, if things go south, I know that I have a backup," Brian proclaimed with conviction.

"Well, I knew something was wrong when I saw you looking in every direction. However, I think we should go right now. I have a bad feeling about this." Harry felt an unsettling feeling as the rave seemed to lose all control.

"You are right, I think we could try the front door if we are not noticed by the masses."

Harry nodded at him and his new ally, Brian, walked through the party toward the front door. However, it seems that luck was not on their side this day. They were shoved in every direction by the members of the party under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Especially Harry, who felt the effect of the pill he swallowed earlier. His body started to heat up and his vision become blurry.

"We are almost there Harry!" Brian helped Harry to stand up, unfortunately, as soon as Harry was standing on his feet, an invisible force struck the back of his head, causing his vision to turn all black.

''Harry!''

* * *

Soon as the young wizard regained consciousness he noticed that his surroundings had changed. Harry found himself with Brian in a small room, lacking any windows, little visible light and dry blood laying across the walls. As Harry and Brian tried to get used to their new surrounding, three hooded figures appeared from nothing in the centre of the dark room. Their hoods completely masked their faces, but Harry and Brian could see that the hooded figure in the middle was shorter compared to the others.

"Welcome, Mr. Braddock. It seems that you have accepted our invitation," the shorter figure spoke. The sound of the voice seems feminine.

"I assume that you didn't take no for an answer," Brian answered simply as he frowned.

"You have made a good decision and I see you have brought a friend?" Brian's blue eyes quickly glanced around then moved toward the figure.

"He's not a friend." Harry and Brian got a bad vibe from the hooded figure.

"Then, you don't see any inconvenience to use him as the first sacrifice of the night."

Their eyes widened in shock.

"What?!"

Suddenly, two more hooded figure appears behind Harry and grabbed his arms. At that moment, the young wizard quickly tried to break out, however, it was pointless.

"What are you doing to him?"

"This is simple Mr. Braddock. We can give the thing that you desire the most by joining our organization and swore your allegiance to us. You can be reunited with your twin sister, only with a small sacrifice. Your sister's life against his life, a small prize to play."

Harry started to lose his cool."Are you bloody mental?! What proof supports your claim?"

The small figure started to chuckle; it didn't help the mood.

"Very perceptive, your acquaintance is, Mr. Braddock. He will make an excellent sacrifice. However, a demonstration is needed."

Without warning the small figure moved to reveal two pale arms from her long cloak. Then, two red seals with an odd pattern popped from nowhere on her palms. After a series of weird arms movement, the entire room was covered with a red light. Suddenly, an army of the shadowy figures appeared from existence as though they were floating in the air. Harry initially thought that they were Dementors, but the temperature was stable.

"What is that?

"Being from parallel dimensions, our knowledge in magic and the supernatural exceed far more than the wizarding world. Yet this only an appetizer. Our offer is still standing Mr. Braddock, join us and your sister will be at our side in the next hour," Brian reflected his options. Finding his twin sister was one of his utmost priority, however, he would have to sacrifice the life of his new ally, although short, he was willing to help if things go south. Could he really trade one life for another one? If Elizabeth was alive, would she accept the bargaining?

"I...I refuse," he said hardly to Harry's surprise but to the annoyance of the figure.

"Then, so be it. You have made a huge mistake Brian Braddock," she answered with venom in her tone as she took off her large hood, revealing a young teenage girl around their age. She had long silvery white hair that fell on her left side, with gray eyes and dark eyeliner. Her skin was significantly pale with aristocrat features, and a mole on the right side under her lower lips, another under her right eye. Harry would consider that she was very pretty and yet felt a strange sense of familiarity.

''Why are you showing us your face? It's quite impractical for someone who going to kill us?'' It didn't make sense to Brian as he was processing a series of questions in his mind, nevertheless, Brian's thoughts were interrupted by the hysterical laugh of the silvery-haired teenage girl.

''Where's the fun if my victims cannot see the face of their murderer? Judging by the look on their faces, they never expected to be killed by a little girl,'' she explained proudly.

''More than you think,'' Harry muttered to himself. The silver-haired girl lost her smirk, changing to a frown, then from nowhere, Brian was pushed against a wall to Harry's disbelief and horror. He heard the sound of Brian's bones at the impact.

''Brian!'' Brian was able to stand up with great difficulty as he started panting with pain. Unfortunately, she didn't stop there, the silver-haired teenager continued her assault of the defenceless Brian. Harry watched reluctantly as the silver-haired girl kicked the young boy in his stomach with a vicious smile.

"Take that you stupid of shit!" Brian spat a mixture of blood and saliva to her enjoyment. He moaned painfully as he raised himself up with determination in his eyes, to the displeasure of the young girl. His expression didn't change at all. Blood flowed from the side of his head and his mouth.

"I'm too stubborn to die, as long I still have breath, you will not get rid of me that easily," Harry couldn't stand it. He couldn't let Brian get killed by doing anything. But no matter what he tried to do, he couldn't break the strong grip of the shadowy figures.

"Stop it!" Harry yelled, causing the teenage girl to turn around with an annoyance.

"What was that?" she abandoned the injured blond to walk in front of the young wizard, staring straight into Harry's green eyes.

"Those eyes of yours, they're annoying!" she kicked Harry straight in his stomach, resulting in him falling on his ass with a moan of pain.

"Don't need to be impatient, frizzy hair, your time is next." She moved back toward Brian as Harry once again was restrained. As he wondered his limited options, suddenly, he felt a cold shiver down his back.

'What's the matter...? Are you simply going to watch?' Harry started to freak out, a voice speaking in his mind was the last thing he needed.

'To think I finally lost my mind. I'm hearing a voice in my head.'

The same sinister voice started to chuckle. 'I'm not the fabrication of your imagination, lad. I watched for quite awhile and I'm deeply satisfied with my choices. Death is waiting for both of you if you do nothing. Are you going to forsake both of you with not fighting? Was your last decision was a mistake then?' The thought of Sirius clouded his mind.

'It wasn't.' Harry felt that his entire body was on fire and the pain was agonizing.

'Vow to me and I will give you the strength to slay your enemies!'

'And even I accept your deal, who's to say you will not stab me in the back or take over my body? What do you want from me?' he asked suspiciously. It sounded too good to be true.

"I have no use for your human body, lad. All I need is the proof of our vow-forged magic and blood!' Harry was lost by the last phrase, however, it did its trick. His only options were accepting the deal or both he and Brian would get killed by a crazy bitch. Sometimes, he wished that he could use magic outside of school.

'Fine, let's do your way,' Harry answered with hesitation. The pain was unbearable. He felt like multiple knives were stabbing every pore of his skin, his scar seemed to have opened as the young wizard clenched his teeth and fists, trying to hold up. The sinister voice began to recite some strange incantation.

"Very well, I am thou, thou art I... Thou who art willing to perform all sacrilegious acts for thine owns justice! Will fall upon my name, and succumb in our rage! Show the strength of the will to ascertain all on thine own, though thou be chained to Hell itself!" Harry couldn't take much more, as his body was on fire, he glared at the silvery-haired witch with all the anger and rage he could muster.

"That's enough you stupid bitch!" Everyone in the room fixed their attention on the young wizard, eyes widened. The teenage girl didn't take the insult very well as one of the shadowy figures struck him in the face, knocking his glasses off in the same blow, nevertheless, it seemed it did not bother the young wizard as he revealed his face. Two golden eyes glinted, a sinister smirk toying with his lips, added to a torn open lightning-shaped purple scar on his forehead which had seen better days.

Brian, who was laying on the floor, stared Harry with awe and fear as the white-haired witch's gray eyes boggled at the view of the damaged scar.

"By Merlin's old scrotum, it's Harry bloody Potter!" From nowhere, a huge wave of force erupted from Harry's body, sending both of the shadowy figures flying across the room. Then, Harry was covered with a black, white and red aura that took shape of an unrecognizable figure. The sinister aura disappeared, revealing a different boy. He was no longer small and skinny: this body was taller and lean with a slightly more muscular figure, his scar healed up and a bit faded; his brilliant green eyes had taken a darker shade, however, his messy black hair remained the same. Black and red tendrils covered his body, leaving his clothes completely intact but adjusted by his new frame. Harry took a good look around himself as he noticed his vision was working without the need of glasses. Eventually, he returned his attention toward the silver-haired young woman with a glare that carried the promise of pain.

"Time for payback time you witch!"


End file.
